St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter signed into law a $15 minimum wage ordinance, following a 7-0 vote by the St. Paul City Council, Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2018. (Scott Takushi / Pioneer Press)

St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter signs into law a $15 minimum wage ordinance, following a 7-0 vote by the St. Paul City Council, Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2018. (Scott Takushi / Pioneer Press)

St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter signed into law a $15 minimum wage ordinance, following a 7-0 vote by the St. Paul City Council, Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2018. (Scott Takushi / Pioneer Press)

In a packed room at City Hall, St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter signs into law a $15 minimum wage ordinance as onlookers cheer, following a 7-0 vote by the St. Paul City Council, Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2018. (Scott Takushi / Pioneer Press)

In a packed room, St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter signs into law a $15 minimum wage ordinance as onlookers cheer, following a 7-0 vote by the St. Paul City Council, Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2018. (Scott Takushi / Pioneer Press)

Calling the document second only to his marriage certificate, St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter signed into law a citywide ordinance that adds Minnesota’s capital city to a growing number of municipalities committed to a $15 minimum wage.

The St. Paul City Council approved the proposed wage schedule on Wednesday afternoon in front of a capacity audience of more than 200 — many of them from organized labor — that spilled outside the council chambers. The vote was unanimous — 7-0 — despite acknowledgments from several members that much work lies ahead in fine-tuning and enforcing the wage requirements, which do not allow restaurant tips to be counted as base pay.

With important exceptions, the ordinance hammered out by Council Member Chris Tolbert and the mayor’s office calls for gradual wage increases for the city’s lowest-paid workers over the next 3½ to 8½ years, with variation depending upon business size. Contract workers are exempt.

A thumb’s up for the $15 minimum wage approved by St. Paul City Council. They voted 7-0 in favor of gradual citywide wage increases without a tip “credit.” Tips will not be counted for purpose of calculating pay. For many, $15 will be new base pay regardless of tips in 2023-2025. pic.twitter.com/87DlFNBLmA

“I am proud to have led this effort,” said Tolbert, addressing the crowded council chamber before the vote. “I am proud that we balanced the thoughtful approach to improving the lives of our workers while also being cognizant of the businesses in our city.”

Carter, who had promised to seek a $15 minimum wage during his inaugural mayoral campaign last year, met with supporters in a conference room after the vote to sign the ordinance into law. The mayor thanked a long list of partners from organized labor, including Rick Varco, political director with SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, who co-chaired a Citizens League task force this year that helped outline priorities.

“This is an enormous coalition,” Carter said to supportive hoots from the crowd, “and guess what? We’re ready to sign a $15 minimum wage.”

Carter said that fellow task force co-chair B. Kyle, president and CEO of the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce, was unable to attend the event because of another commitment.

The federal minimum wage has stood at $7.25 for nearly a decade, fueling criticism from workers and labor advocates while compounding the negative impact of rising housing costs in major cities. Under pressure from their constituents, city leaders from coast to coast have taken up the minimum wage issue themselves.

NO IMMEDIATE RULE CHANGES

Despite the rallying cry “$15 now!” however, Wednesday’s council vote may not lead to immediate changes for the 56,000 low-income workers who may be affected down the line. After a transition year, the first wage increases are expected to take effect in St. Paul in July 2020, with annual pay hikes.

In St. Paul, businesses with more than 10,000 employees, as well as St. Paul’s city government, will be expected to pay their workers at least $15 per hour by July 2022. Large businesses employing more than 100 workers must do the same by July 2023, small businesses by July 2025, and “micro” businesses of five or fewer employees by July 2027.

The rules adopted Wednesday list exemptions, temporary exemptions or partial exemptions for contract workers, workers in certified programs for the disabled, youth trainees, young people enrolled in city-approved enrichment programs and the St. Paul Saints professional ball team. Tipped employees, however, are not exempt.

Within the restaurant industry in particular, the wage ordinance has drawn criticism that it could lead to counter service in restaurants, more automation, tighter staffing or even small-business closures — all of which could be an unintended boon for larger businesses.

Tony Chesak, executive director of the Minnesota Licensed Beverage Association, which represents bars and liquor stores, said in a written statement that many workers had supported “a smart phase-in with tip recognition. It is unfortunate that our business community and, importantly, staff who work in the industry, were not listened to nor were their requests considered.”

Addressing the restaurant community before the vote, Council Member Rebecca Noecker spoke at length about why proposals to allow tips to be counted toward wages failed to sway the council.

“What you were advocating for is not in the final version of this ordinance,” said Noecker, noting that compromise proposals would have created a mishmash of rules and an unfair playing field. “That does not mean that you were not heard. … I think we need to base our decisions to whatever extent we can on actual experience. And the actual experience of most cities that have raised their wages significantly is not a negative one.”

FRANCHISES ARE SMALL BUSINESSES

St. Paul’s ordinance differentiates between corporate chains — such as a McDonald’s operated by the Chicago-based corporation — and a locally controlled franchise. A McDonald’s under local ownership, for instance, would be treated like a small business under the wage schedule, depending upon how many workers it employs.

For Valentina McKenzie, an organizer with CTUL, a labor advocacy group that helped galvanize fast-food workers around the minimum wage issue, the slower franchise rollout is the weakest aspect of the new rules. “We’ll be bringing it back for discussion,” said McKenzie, who noted that nationally, “fast-food workers led this fight.”

Ben Field, 19, said he shares a house in Minneapolis with six roommates, but the $10.50 he earns per hour at a Taco Bell in St. Paul barely covers his $400 in rent. He welcomed the wage increase.

“It’s going to be great for me,” said Field, who grew up in St. Paul. “I’m actually going to be able to plan financially rather than living paycheck to paycheck. A lot of people I work with support a family on $10 an hour. Compared to what I go through, that’s infinitely harder.”

According to national reports, at least 10 large cities, seven states and many smaller communities are transitioning to minimum wages between $12 and $15 an hour over the course of several years. San Francisco became the first major city to reach a minimum wage of $15 in July, and Seattle is not far behind. In Minneapolis, the minimum wage will reach $15 for large businesses in July 2022.

St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter lists long series of labor partners that advocated for $15 minimum wage. “This is an enormous coalition and guess what? We’re ready to sign a $15 minimum wage,” said Carter, to supportive hooting and hollering. pic.twitter.com/ha2Z2m6Xpw

Frederick Melo was once sued by a reader for $2 million but kept on writing. He came to the Pioneer Press in 2005 and brings a testy East Coast attitude to St. Paul beat reporting. He spent nearly six years covering crime in the Dakota County courts before switching focus to the St. Paul mayor's office, city council, and all things neighborhood-related, from the city's churches to its parks and light rail. A resident of Hamline-Midway, he is married to a Frogtown woman. He Tweets with manic intensity at @FrederickMelo.

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